‘The Ides of March’ plays politics better than usual

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Charismatic: Ryan Gosling, above, is excellent as a press secretary with political ambitions of his own in “The Ides of March.” (Courtesy photo)

Charismatic: Ryan Gosling, above, is excellent as a press secretary with political ambitions of his own in “The Ides of March.” (Courtesy photo)

Like the charm-exuding candidate at the center of the imbroglio it depicts, George Clooney’s “The Ides of March” has little to say, but says it so winningly that you can’t help but approve as it advances through the campaign trail and the related jungle.

The movie, Clooney’s fourth big-screen directorial outing, is, like Clooney’s “Good Night, and Good Luck,” a morality story, in this case transpiring in cynical times, under drab Ohio skies.

Basically, the campaign-drama format receives a fresh batch of characters and headline-inspired particulars in this adaptation by Clooney, Grant Heslov and Beau Willimon, based on Willimon’s play, “Farragut North.”

The story centers on the loss of innocence of Stephen Meyers (Ryan Gosling), the dynamic 30-year-old press secretary for Mike Morris (Clooney), a Democratic governor who, thanks to his personal charisma and the speeches Stephen writes, has become a leading presidential contender without denying his progressive and agnostic (“The Constitution is my religion”) aspects.

Stephen believes in Morris; to quote scoop-hungry New York Times reporter Ida Horowicz (Marisa Tomei), he gets “goosebumpy” over him. To get Morris elected, he plays dirty.

Clooney aborts the political specifics and heads into mainstream terrain, where temptation occurs via power and sex.

Misleadingly titled, the movie isn’t Shakespearean. Clooney doesn’t achieve a tone of tragedy. We get no insight into the addictive world of politics. A plot turn involving Molly, who’s just a device of a character, sends the plot into ridiculous territory.

Yet while this doesn’t rank with politician dramas like “The Candidate” or David Mamet’s spin-master stories, Clooney has made an intelligent, entertaining Hollywood thriller, and that’s not a bad deal.

The tension, which revolves around who will and won’t sink, is constant. A face-off sequence crackles. The dialogue, while uneven, contains nuggets. Ditto for the visual touches.

Hoffman and Giamatti, both wonderful, provide a kick plus deeper thrills as their characters machinate. A scene in which these rival schemers eye each other with venomous antagonism achieves priceless status.

The stellar cast also includes an underused Geoffrey Wright, playing an influential senator.MOVIE REVIEW